by Joshua Hoyt
Chapter 10:
Tom trained long and hard to learn the simplest of cantrips that Aithnea performed with slightest of effort. The excitement of learning the simple cantrips quickly wore off when Kristiana taught him the more advanced spells, and he made little to no headway. He soon doubted his ability and wondered if he would ever perform the complex spells he watched Aithnea practice. Even though he performed the movements perfectly and recited the words as directed, the energy didn’t materialize. Aithnea encouraged him and stayed by his side through all the days of discouragement, keeping him going. She pointed out small movements that he would miss or helped, him with the correct pronunciation of difficult words. He grew closer and closer to Aithnea as the winter months turned into spring. He enjoyed her company as they talked about each other’s pasts and wondered what was to come.
Cody helped Tom with his swordplay. He pushed him harder and faster than he thought possible. Where he failed in magic he made up double in swordplay. He learned the maneuvers easily and learned to recognize counterattacks without a thought. Cody still outmatched him easily and Tom knew that he would never match his skill, but he still felt good about making Cody sweat on occasion. When he took a break, Tom watched John and Cody duel. It was like watching a magnificent dance with swords flying in every direction. John would feint with his long sword and then twist his dagger bringing it toward Cody’s arm or leg. Cody would deflect the blow and at the same time make a counterattack. John in turn would either block it with his sword or dodge it entirely causing the weapon to go past him, hitting only air. The dance would sometimes go on for hours as the two men became so enthralled that they would lose track of time. Karman yelled out suggestions and gave further direction to Cody as he tried to contend with the much greater skill of John. Tom would watch and mimic their moves, learning to parry and then quickly counterattack.
On Tom’s fourteenth birthday, the first of three that he spent at the cabin, Karman stayed up late with him. Before a warm fire, they talked about Karman’s younger years, and how he had trained John in everything that he knew. He smiled and laughed as he talked about the old days. At one point Karman became very serious and looking Tom in the eyes said, “Tom I don’t know why, but I feel that you’re very important to this world. You’ll make a difference. You must be brave and you must have the courage to see things through. Listen to your heart,” he said as he pointed to his own, “and remember all of those who have come before you. Remember the sacrifice of our predecessors who have given their very lives so that we have a chance.” He turned and looked at a small picture of a man that sat on the mantle of the fire place. “It’s very important that we do not let them down.” He continued to look at the picture for several minutes and then turned back to Tom, smiling. He laughed and shrugged then continued talking about happier days.
Tom read from the book in the old library as often as he could, even though it often brought intense headaches and he didn’t get very far. However, he learned that the group called the Forsaken Petal enlisted women and taught them their magic. They taught them sacred codes of honor: serving others needs before their own, protecting the weak, and using magic only for good. The Order of The Rose slowly withdrew and those belonging to the forsaken petal worried they would not be able to accomplish their task in time. They made plans to fake the deaths of some in their order. This would allow them to complete the training of the women they had chosen. However, a problem arose with their plan when a member within the group became disenchanted with their goals and betrayed them. The Order of The Rose acted quickly and mercilessly. They began to destroy the women who had been chosen by the Forsaken Petal and forced the members of the group to be the first to leave the world. A few women escaped the orders wrath, and became known as enchantresses. They continued to train and learn the magic on their own using their counterparts as heroic guards who protected them while they wielded their magic with devastating power.
As the order left and took their magic with them, the Forsaken Petal’s fear started to become a reality. A small group of women, whom the Forsaken Petal had taught, had the ability to draw energy from those who were near them. These women called upon dark forces to gain power. The women became known as witches and were hunted tirelessly, but to the great despair of the Order of The Rose, they had already grown too powerful and the order too weak. The Forsaken Petal, to their utmost grief, realized that they were the very cause of their greatest fear and lamented their mistake. The order continued to withdraw and with them the magic began to leave the men of the world and so magic passed from men to women. The numbers of the order continued to dwindle. Four men who had established the Forsaken Petal remained. Those four men covenanted with each other that they would stay in this world until they had corrected their wrong. Tom learned that one of them had written the book that he currently read and the other three remained hidden from the order so that they could continue the fight.
The one who wrote the book sacrificed his life so that he could write the history of the Order of The Rose. The Forsaken Petal hoped that someday a person would come into the world who would re-establish the Order of The Rose. They hoped that this new order would remember the old ways and protect the counsel and the people once again. Not making the same mistakes the old order had made. The book warned the new order to beware of the witches and their power.
Is the world really as bad as they make it out to be? The witches don’t seem to have that much power. They’ve only occasionally disrupted things. Why does the order fear the witches so much? They would occasionally steal boys but rarely. He’d only heard of it at the orphanage. Tom shrugged and thought, Maybe its subtler things that just aren't seen. Maybe the corruption of the counsel was one of those things? Tom read from the book as Kristiana wrote what he said. He loved to watch her elegant hands sweep across the pages of her book. Many times during breaks Kristiana would talk to him about magic and its history. These stories reminded him of his mother and how she would tell him stories of dragons and princes. This alone motivated him to keep reading from the book despite the headaches and nightmares that came almost nightly.
As time passed Tom grew stronger both physically and mentally. He learned to rely more and more on his new friends and trust both Aithnea and Cody for their wisdom and strength. He knew that he would always be able to depend on them. They spent countless hours talking and discussing the book and what they had learned that day. They explored the nearby forest and once found a small hut. Karman told them that the hut had been used as a hiding place if something happened at the cabin. The hut was well supplied and had all of the equipment they would need for a quick escape. John and Karman talked about an escape plan and decided that the hut would be a perfect place to meet should something happen.
